DATA: Using E-DataAid.exe with Command-Line Interpreters [25323]

This article applies to:
E-Prime 3.0
E-Prime 2.0
 
This has been introduced in E-Prime 2.0 version 2.0.8.72.

 
Detail
E-DataAid is capable of exporting entire data files and running/exporting analyses via common command-line interpreters. This article shows one start-to-finish example for each of these two actions. The instructions assume that all relevant .edat3/.emrg3 already exist in known locations. The article explains how to create the Control File for each action, what the available command-line flags are for E-DataAid, and how to combine these two elements to perform both actions from the default Windows command-line interpreter, Command Prompt.
 
E-DataAid Control Files
To use a command-line interpreter for either of these two actions, you must first create the .txt "Control File." Accordingly, this article refers to the two types as "Export Control Files" and "Analysis-Running Control Files". Each requires specific formatting and contents to enact their particular function. In addition to creating the Control File, you need to later reference its exact name and file path in Command Prompt. Copies of the example Control Files below are available for download at the bottom of this article.
 
Export Control File Example
Here is an example showing the formatting and typical contents of a .txt file serving as an Export Control File. This example contains the necessary content to export a pre-existing data file from the BasicRT sample experiment, on a Windows account named "admin":

 
NOTE:The above example includes asterisks and underscores only as placeholders. Instances of "*" reflect specifying nothing next to a parameter and instances of "**" reflect a single indentation from the press of the TAB key.
 
NOTE:The Unicode flag is only available in E-Prime 2.0.10.353 and beyond.
 
You need to specify the above fourteen parameters in any Export Control File. The first parameter specifies the Inheritance option within E-DataAid see E-DATAAID: Options (E-DataAid) [22792]. The second parameter points to the pre-existing .edat3 file and the third parameter specifies a name, with a file path, for the resulting .txt file into which you are exporting the data. The other parameters consist of the normal set of options for exporting a file from within E-DataAid. For more information on these options see E-DATAAID: Exporting and Importing Data [22832]. For the values of these options in the above example, the number "1" is the equivalent of a checked checkbox, the number "0" is the equivalent of an unchecked checkbox and specifying nothing indicates a selection of "NULL" or "None". The above example reflects the default settings for the preset "E-Prime Text File" Export option:
 

 
NOTE:In E-Prime 3.0, you are capable of automatically accomplishing the same exact data export to an "E-Prime Text File" as the above example for any experiment within E-Studio itself see LOGGING: Automatic Generation of Tab-Delimited Data File [23601].
 
Analysis-Running Control File Example
Here is an example showing the formatting and typical contents of a .txt file serving as an Analysis-Running Control File. This example contains the necessary content to run an analysis using the sample .anl file in Stroop Task [30142]. This example assumes that the relevant .edat3 and .anl files already exist in a custom "Stroop" subfolder (within the default My Experiments/3.0 parent folder), on a Windows account named "admin":

You need to specify the above thirteen parameters above in any Analysis-Running Control File, at the very least. Your Analysis-Running Control File potentially requires more parameters than the above example. The third parameter, ColumnCheck, is to indicate the number (and names) of the columns you are expecting. The example parameter value of "0" in the line directly underneath specifies to not perform a column check. If this value is not "0", then this numeric value has to match the number of lines directly underneath (before the "AnalysisFiles" parameter), each line containing the exact names of the columns you wish to verify before proceeding.
 
All other non-numeric parameters either specify a type of file, or a pre-existing filename with a full file path. The numeric parameters specify how many files of each respective type you are expecting. While you only ever run analyses on one single .edat3 or .emrg3 file at a time, you are able to run multiple analyses at once. The above example assumes you are running one analysis only. For each .anl file you are specifying in the Analysis-Running Control File, you need to specify the same number of: A. resulting .txt data files that export the individual analysis results and B. resulting "Header" .txt files.
 
NOTE:Header .txt files are new-line-character-delimited .txt files that contain additional information about the analysis you are exporting as a .txt file. Here is a generic example of the Header .txt file you generate from the sample .anl file in Stroop Task [30142]:
 

A copy of the above example Header File is available for download at the bottom of this article.

 
Command-Line Flags for E-DataAid
This table describes the specific command-line flags to associate with the Export and/or Analysis-Running Control Files:
 

 
Command Prompt Example
Any export command requires:

1. direction to E-DataAid.exe (for either E-DataAid 2 or 3),
2. a flag to load then export a resulting .txt file (either uncompressed or compressed),
3. a pre-existing Export Control File, and
4. a flag for the file path that the Export Control File follows (in quotation marks).

Any analysis-running command requires:

1. direction to E-DataAid.exe (for either E-DataAid 2 or 3),
2. a flag to get data for a workbook,
3. a pre-existing Analysis-Running Control File, and
4. a flag for the file path that the Analysis-Running Control File follows (in quotation marks).

NOTE:The analysis-running command does not require an additional flag to load then export the two resulting .txt files.
 
The default file path for E-DataAid.exe is C:\Program Files (x86)\PST\E-Prime 3.0\Program\E-DataAid.exe for E-DataAid 3 and C:\Program Files (x86)\PST\E-Prime 2.0\Program\E-DataAid.exe for E-DataAid 2. The "cd" command changes the current directory in Command Prompt. This allows you to temporarily specify the file path to E-DataAid, so your final command can directly start with "E-DataAid.exe". Here is an example of changing the current directory from the default user folder to the E-Prime 3.0\Program folder on a Windows account named "admin":

 
Following along with the specific examples in the steps above, here is the final export command pointing at the "Example Export Control File.txt" in the "BasicRT" subfolder. The below image highlights the four numbered requirements from above for any export command:
 

If the Export command is successful, the "OutFile" from the Export Control File now exists at the end of that file path and contains the contents of the original data file.
 
Following along with the specific examples in the steps above, here is the final analysis-running command pointing at the "Example Analysis-Running Control File.txt" in the custom "Stroop" subfolder. The below image highlights the four numbered requirements from above for any analysis-running command:
 

If the Analysis-Running command is successful, the "TextDataFile" and the "HeaderFile" from the Analysis-Running Control File now exist at the end of their respective file paths and contain: A. the results of the analysis and B. the additional Header information.